The NBCC Foundation, an affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. (NBCC), recently awarded a $5,000 2016 NBCC Foundation rural scholarship to Adams State alumna Sarah Marie Jennings '14. The rural scholarship is awarded to counseling students who commit to practicing in rural areas upon graduation.

Currently, Jennings is a graduate student in the Adams State Counselor Education Department. She plans on completing her master's degree in clinical mental health counseling program in 2017.

"I am so thankful for the opportunities this scholarship will provide," Jennings said. "In addition to the five thousand dollars, the NBCC has provided me with access to additional training as well as support and supervision that will help me grow to become a better counselor."

The mission of the NBCC Foundation is to leverage the power of counseling by strategically focusing resources for positive change. The Foundation created the rural scholarship in 2009 to improve access to counseling services in rural communities, which suffer disproportionately from a lack of mental health care. More than 40 students from across the country applied for the five 2016 rural scholarships.

As a rural scholarship recipient, Jennings will receive $5,000 to support her counseling education and recognize her commitment to the underserved. Upon graduation, Jennings will continue working on the medical integration team at the San Luis Valley Behavioral Health Group, located in Alamosa. In her position, she collaborates with medical providers to ensure clients have greater access to mental health services that would otherwise not be easily attainable.

Jennings' goals are to expand the availability of mental health services in underserved areas and to provide education about potential benefits. Earning this scholarship will allow Jennings to attend counseling conferences, establish a stronger professional identity as a counselor, learn evidence-based practices to better serve underserved populations, and advocate for the counseling profession.

The NBCC Foundation has also awarded five $5,000 military scholarships to increase the number of counselors serving fellow military personnel, veterans and their families. The Foundation plans to continue offering scholarships to increase the number of counselors in the areas where they are needed most and will open the next application period in September 2016. For more information or to make a gift in support of the Foundation's mission, please visit NBCC Foundation.

About the NBCC Foundation

The NBCC Foundation is the nonprofit affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), based in Greensboro, North Carolina. NBCC is the nation's premier professional certification board devoted to credentialing counselors who meet standards for the general and specialty practices of professional counseling. Currently, there are more than 60,000 National Certified Counselors (NCCs) in the United States and more than 50 countries. The Foundation's mission is to leverage the power of counseling by strategically focusing resources for positive change.

Four Adams State University faculty members were granted tenure April 8, as approved by the university's Board of Trustees. Seven faculty were promoted in rank. The board also approved Emeritus Faculty status and sabbatical requests.

Emeritus Faculty status was approved for the following faculty, who are retiring at the conclusion of the spring 2016 semester:

Dr. Paul Newman - Professor of Theatre

Dr. Linda Reid - Professor of Business

Sabbaticals

The board approved sabbatical requests from the following:

Aaron Abeyta, Professor of English - Fall 2016Abeyta plans to complete his second novel, based on his non-fiction piece, "Wilderness in Four Parts or Why We Cannot Say My Great Grandfather's Name," which will appear as a chapter in Relative Wild, to be published by The Center for Humans and Nature.

Dr. Jared Beeton, Professor of Earth Science - Spring 2017
Jared Beeton plans to synthesize data from undergraduate research conducted over the last nine year and compile the data into two scholarly papers. He will also further build collaborative relationships with Colorado State University and University of Northern Colorado.

Dr. Renee Beeton, Associate Professor of Chemistry -Spring 2017Renee Beeton plans to expand research conducted with Dr. Stephanie Hilwig that explores implicit gender biases in hiring and ratings of competency of chemistry teaching assistants. Additional research will gather data from four major Colorado universities, and examine the effects of ethnicity on how students rank potential teaching assistants. In addition, the work will compare results from Adams State, a Hispanic Serving Institution, with schools that are not HSIs.

Adams
State University has been ranked among the top 15 accredited online master's in
clinical mental health counseling degree programs by Best Counseling Degrees.
The ranking was published on the organization's website in November 2015. The Adams
State University Counselor Education Department was ranked second.

This
ranking was created by using the National Center for Education Statistics'
College Navigator database and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and
Related Educational Programs (CACREP) database to gather a list of schools
offering an advanced degree in mental health counseling with a distance
education option. After cross-referencing with the Council for Higher Education
Accreditation (CHEA), only regionally accredited schools were included.
Priority was then given to programs accredited by CACREP. Finally, schools were
ranked (within the 10 CACREP accredited programs and then again within the
remaining programs) based on the average graduate student tuition and fees.

"At
Adams State, the academic experience you receive will match none other,"
says Dr. Beverlee McClure, ASU President. "With distance learning, we
pride ourselves in delivering quality programs while providing a high level of
access. We are thrilled to be ranked second in the country among online
Master's in Counseling programs."

Adams
State offers a CACREP accredited online Master of Arts in Counseling with a
Clinical Mental Health Emphasis. The online program is designed to meet the
needs of students that do not live in proximity to a counseling program and/or
whose work schedule makes it challenging to attend on-campus classes. The
content of the online courses is the same as other accredited ASU courses but
in an online format. This program requires the completion of two on-campus,
one-week summer residency intensives. Graduates of this program will be
prepared to pursue licensure as a professional counselor. The Clinical Mental
Health Counseling curriculum meets the educational requirements for the
Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Colorado.

Best Counseling
Degrees is the No. 1 premier online resource for exploring and choosing from
the nation's best counseling degree programs that will develop the knowledge
and skills needed to further a career in this helping profession. The site's
mission is to share expert information about the top counseling degrees to help
people achieve their professional goals. Best Counseling Degrees addresses
relevant topics, answers frequently asked questions, and offers tips and
information related to counseling degrees and more. Read the full article at Best Counseling Degrees. Read More…
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